Radiant High
by Ryuu-Xana
Summary: Rewritten  When one of Vexen's experiments goes wrong  what else is new?  Org XIII's Somebodies get transported straight into the castle.  And if that's not bad enough, their Heartless are invading and nobody knows how to stop them.
1. Chapter 1

I'm re-writing this. I have no idea what I plan on doing with it or where it is going. I have an idea of where I want it to go, but I don't what randomness I'll run into along the way.

The idea of Xcat (pronounced "Scat") was my idea, but I do not claim him as my own, because, in essence, he is still Cheshire Cat. I own Xantara and Menixna. Ikaxiri and Minaxné are the Nobodies of Kairi and Naminé. (Yes, I do know that in the real KH universe, that would never work because Naminé is Kairi's Nobody, but this is an AU so it plays by alternate rules.) For some reason I don't feel right claiming them as my own. They are my idea, but Kairi and Naminé were not my idea, therefore I don't feel right in claiming Ikaxiri and Minaxné. That being said, I do not own Kingdom Hearts in any way, shape, or form. This is story is merely fanfiction.

Now on with the story!

XoXx0xXoX - XoXx0xXoX - XoXx0xXoX

* * *

><p>Chapter 1<p>

Demyx couldn't sleep. It was seven-thirty AM. He grabbed his guitar and wandered around the castle a bit. He wandered into the den and found it empty. But of course he didn't look up. He sat down and started playing chords. There was no sense to what he was playing until he hit a few in succession and started humming along with the tune. Then he broke out into song. **_"Oh her eyes, her eyes/ Make the stars look like they're not shining/ Her hair, her hair/ Falls perfectly without her trying/ She's so beautiful/ And I tell her every day."_** Demyx sighed. "No I don't. I wish I did, but I can't."

"Stop being a scaredy-fish and just tell her how you feel, Demyx." Xigbar landed on the floor in front of Demyx, scaring the musician half to death. Said musician jumped backward and flung himself against the far wall.

"Xigbar, don't do that! What were you doing on the ceiling? I thought you were finally out of your 'sleeping like a bat' phase!"

"I am. I was reading. Zexion lent me this amazing book! You should read it when I'm done with it! I'd be in the library reading it but Luxord, Saix, Axel, and Roxas are playing strip poker there."

"And Zexion hasn't killed them yet? What are they doing up? Axel usually sleeps until ten. Roxas sleeps until noon."

"Zexion is on a mission so they're using their time to mess up his favorite spot. And they've been playing since last night."

"They haven't slept at all? Saix hasn't called it quits yet? Tell me he hasn't _killed_ anybody yet?"

"Nope nope. He's ingested a lot of alcohol though," warned the Freeshooter.

"Thanks for the warning." Demyx shuddered at the memory of the last time Saix had too much to drink. He was all huggy and lovey. It was _creepy_. He insisted that Demyx was "his bestie best friend in the whole wide non-existent world." Afterword, when he had sobered up, he tried to eat Demyx. "He's drunk and they're all still with him in there?"

"They're fine. He won't leave Luxord alone. Everybody else is safe."

"Good. That means he'll leave me alone." Demyx shuddered again. "I hope Zexion tries to kill them all on his arrival. They deserve it."

Xigbar chuckled. "So what'cha gonna do about your lady-friend?"

Demyx shrugged. "I don't know. I wanted to have time alone to think so I wandered in here, but I guess that's not going to happen. I think I'm just gonna go down to the pool. Water always helps me think."

"Just tell her how you feel. Girls always like that. Ask Ikaxri, Menixna, or Minaxné."

Demyx pouted.

Xigbar sighed. "But if you want some alone time, I'll give you some alone time. Go to the pool; think, relax, clear your mind."

Demyx smiled and gave Xigbar a hug. "Thank you, Xig-Xig. You're the best!" And with that, the blond musician ran off to the pool.

Xigbar chuckled as a plot started forming in his head.

* * *

><p>Xigbar wandered around the library until he stumbled upon the poker game. The sight he was met with wasn't very pretty: Roxas was stripped down to his boxers; Axel was clothed in his shirt, boxers, and socks; Saix was shirtless and his arm was draped around Luxord's shoulders; Luxord was the only one who was fully clothed—Huh. Imagine that. His Organization XIII coat was hanging on the back of his chair.<p>

"Hey boys!" waved Xigbar as he stopped, standing behind Luxord's chair. He put his hands on Luxord's shoulders. "Mind if I take Lux?" he asked without waiting for an answer. "No? Okay then. See ya!" He and Luxord vanished into thin air.

"What the hell was that?" demanded the card shark when they had landed in the kitchen and Luxord regained his footing.

"What was what?" answered the sniper.

"That!" exclaimed Luxord, gesturing wildly to the ceiling. "You can't do that to person without a warning first! _You_ may be used to it, but there are those of us how are not gifted with the art of teleportation! _I_, for one, would rather not do that again. I prefer our portals. And what was the big idea, stealing me away in the middle of the game? I was winning!"

"Correction my dear friend, you were cheating. You are quite clever with your time manipulation, I must say. But I guess you would have that kind of practice with time and cards and games since you used to be Mad."

Luxord narrowed his eyes. "Explain."

"Hatter."

Luxord gestured with his hand for the sniper to continue.

"Mad Hatter."

"Yes, and Axel's name used to be spelled just like a girl's name. Is this news to you, mate?"

"No, no. Not at all. This just means you knew Cat before he was Xcat."

"Yeah…" said Luxord.

Xigbar rolled his eyes. "Oh, come now. You know I'm not that thick. Animals can't be changed. Xcat is just neutral, but to fit in he anagrammed his name with an 'X' like the rest of us."

"No, he just put an 'X' in front of 'Cat' and now tells us to pronounce it like 'Scat,'" said Luxord. "He really is something, isn't he?"

"Right…Real visionary." The sniper rolled his eyes. "I had a point to this god awful conversation, but now I can't remember it." Xigbar sighed and disappeared into thin air with a small 'pop' sound.

"Well, that was odd. Even for Xigbar." The kitchen was silent for a moment while Luxord debated what to do next. "Now I want tea." He got up and looked in the cupboards. "Which we are out of. It doesn't matter. The tea around just is not right. Good old Wonderland tea is what I need right now." The card shark opened up a portal and stepped through it.

* * *

><p>When Demyx arrived at the pool he was amazed to see that he was not the only person there. There was a girl already in the pool. She had ice blue hair that hung down by her shoulders.<p>

"H-Hi Xantara," Demyx stuttered nervously. "What are you doing here? And what are you doing awake?"

"I should ask you the same question, Dem. Don't you wake up at nine-ish?"

"I couldn't sleep."

"I know what you mean. My room is right next to the library and Roxas and Axel were being loud. So was Saix actually. I don't think they left the library all night."

"Yeah, they're still playing strip poker. Luxord's playing too. He wasn't loud?"

"Luxord's always loud. I've learned to tune him out."

"Demyx has something he wanted to ask you, Xana," a voice stated from the ceiling.

Demyx looked up at Xigbar who was walking upside down in mid-air, ten feet above the pool. "What are you doing here?" the blond asked in an un-amused voice.

"Walking upside down, of course."

"No. I mean, how did you get here?"

"Well don't you know? When a mommy and a daddy love each other—"

"Yeah, I don't need the 'birds and bees talk' again. Thanks, Xigbar. No. How did you get _here_," Demyx said, gesturing around to the pool area.

"The same way you did, of course."

Demyx looked back at the door; he was sure he was the only person who walked through it.

"I died in my previous life and found myself here."

Demyx blanched. "Not 'here' as in the castle, 'here' as in the pool!" He threw his hands up in exasperation. "If I wanted my questions to be answered in riddles, I would have gone to Wonderland and had a chat with Chesh—Xcat!"

"Geez," said Xigbar. Still upside down, he walked toward Demyx. "You could have just said so." Then he did a flip to the ground. "I teleported here."

"You mean with a portal?" asked Xana.

"No, I can teleport through space. I prefer to keep it to a minimum if I can though, so I only do it in the castle."

"Oh that's so cool." Xantara looked at Demyx. "What is it that you wanted to ask me, Demyx?"

Demyx glared at Xigbar before flashing Xana his best smile. "I—uh—I mean—Oh heck…I don't know what I mean." The smile faded away. "Sorry. Forget it. It's nothing."

"Are you sure?" asked Xana. "It doesn't seem like nothing to me."

"For now, it's nothing. Can we just leave it?" snapped Demyx. He didn't do well under pressure unless he was on a stage.

"Oh…kay? Are you okay, Demyx?" asked the girl. She climbed out of the pool and checked her watch. "Oh no. I think I'm late. I was going to go with Axel on his mission. Xemnas assigned him to go grocery shopping in Radiant Garden. And Axel even offered to take me to Traverse Town if I went with him. I wanted to pick up a few things and there is only one shop in all the worlds that I know of that sells them. And it just happens to be in Traverse Town. Xemnas also asked me to go with him because if somebody doesn't, he usually just spends all the money on boxes upon boxes of sea-salt ice-cream."

"Oh!" exclaimed Xigbar. "I always wondered why we had so many boxes of ice cream. I knew Xemnas didn't buy them and Saix couldn't have because he hates anything…—Well, he just hates anything."

"Oh. Okay then." Demyx looked crest-fallen.

"But if you want me to stay, I can stay. I bet Xigbar wouldn't mind going in my place."

Xigbar nodded enthusiastically.

"Go. You have that stuff you want to get," urged Demyx. "What I want to tell you can wait."

"If you're sure," the girl said hesitantly. Demyx nodded and the girl opened a portal to the library. The sounds of the poker game echoed around in the darkness.

Demyx sighed as the portal closed behind her. "That's it! I'm hopeless. All I want to do is figure out a good way to ask her out. But all I can seem to do whenever I'm with her is: One—Stutter—and two—make myself look like a fool!" The boy turned to Xigbar and was only met with empty space. Demyx looked up toward the ceiling to see his ponytailed comrade somersaulting through the air. "Really?" snapped a very un-amused musician. Maybe he would just go chat with Xcat or Luxord or…someone. Demyx threw up his hands and made a sound of exasperation. "That's it! I'm done! I don't know what to do about anything! Nobody wants to listen to me!" Demyx opened his own portal and walked through it, not caring where it led him.

Once Xigbar was sure he was alone he stopped somersaulting and let gravity take its toll. He plunged headfirst into the pool in a perfect dive. He then swam to the edge and climbed out. He walked over to the towel closet and pulled out a towel to dry himself off. He didn't want to go see Larxene when he was soaking wet. There was no point in giving the electric cockroach the upper hand if he somehow angered her with his idea.

Once he was sure he was ready, he opened a portal outside Larxene's room. Xigbar knocked on her door and stepped back a few steps. Better safe than sorry. If he had been going to Lexaeus' room or Xaldin's room, he would have portaled right into their rooms, but the sniper was a bit more cautious around the electric cockroach. In other words, she scared him.

"What?" Larxene was annoyed when she opened her door. Never a good sign. Her hair was also a mess. "What is so important that you had to interrupt my beauty sleep?" she snapped.

Xigbar mentally kicked himself. In his rush of plotting he forgot it was still early in the morning. "It's only eight," he said, a smile on his face.

She raised her arms and the sniper flinched back.

"Pleasedontkillme," he said in a rush and jumble of words.

Larxene gasped playfully and covered her mouth in faux-surprise to cover her grin. "Is the great and powerful Xigbar _scared_ of little ol' me?" She giggled.

"I-I wanted to talk to you about something, but…I kinda forgot how early it was. I'll come back later if you would prefer."

"How could you have forgotten that it was still early? Axel isn't wandering the castle, Roxas isn't on the loose in a half-asleep daze, Demyx is still in bed sleeping, Zexion is in the library reading, Vexen's in the basement doing his experiments, and Xemnas and Saix are still brooding over Kingdom Hearts."

"Yeah, no. Only two of those statements are true. Axel and Roxas are playing strip poker with Saix, Zexion is on a mission, Demyx is…somewhere, and I think Luxord is still in the kitchen where I left him. I'm pretty sure Vexen is in the basement doing experiments, and when is Xemnas _not_ brooding over Kingdom Hearts?"

"Okay, wow. Yeah. Wake me up when things get normal and when Zexion returns and is kicking ass. I like when Zexion kicks ass. It's amusing. AND NORMAL!" Larxene shouted. She yawned and shut the door in Xigbar's face.

* * *

><p>XoXx0xXoX - XoXx0xXoX - XoXx0xXoX<p>

Did you like it? Please review it. I love reviews.


	2. Chapter 2

Hey! It's been awhile since I posted this. I suppose it's about time for an update, yes? So, here it is!

Amienn is an OC and she is Namine's twin sister. And just a head's up. This is a parallel universe to the game universe. Just an FYI so you don't get confused. Hopefully it'll make more sense later on.

XoXx0xXoX - XoXx0xXoX - XoXx0xXoX

* * *

><p>Chapter 2<p>

Luxord stepped out of his portal and into the garden where a tea party was being held. "Hare!"

His furry friend was sitting at the table with Cheshire.

"Hatter!" exclaimed the furry brown bunny. "You're back!"

"Only to visit. I don't know how long I can stay, but I just had to get out of that stuffy castle."

"Have some tea. Stay while."

"Oh what am I saying? Time is my talent. I can stay as long as I want." He sat down in between the furry creatures and took a bottle of rum out of his coat pocket. He'd stopped in Port Royal on his way over.

* * *

><p>It was Saturday.<p>

Tanara smiled as she sat up in bed. Today was the day.

She looked at the clock and squealed. It was ten AM.

She was going back to Radiant Garden. A boarding school had opened up and she was allowed to go. Sora, Riku, Amienn, and Kairi were going too. Tanara was so excited. She could see her old friends again. Sure, they had kept in contact by writing letters, but they had never seen each other since the move six years ago.

She looked around her room. Boxes were scattered about and the only piece of furniture unpacked still was her airbed, which she was currently sitting on.

She hopped off her bed and skipped into her little sister, Kairi's, room. "Hey Chicka!" She plopped down on Kairi's airbed.

Kairi groaned. "You've been spending too much time with Amienn, Tanara, " she groaned.

"Nu-uh," Tanara disagreed.

"You're starting to talk like her."

"I'm just excited! We're going back to Radiant Garden! I can't wait to see Lea and Isa again! Oh, they're gonna be so surprised! Do you even remember it?"

Kairi groaned again. "I was only five."

"Right! So, you don't remember Ienzo?" Tanara asked, a mischievous gleam in her eye.

Her heart did a little flutter-jump at the name, but she couldn't picture a face to go with it. "Who?" asked Kairi.

Tanara grinned widely. "Oh, this is gonna be so much fun! You'll remember him when you see him. I know you will! And you can meet Naminé and Ven and this will just be so much fun!"

There was a knock on the door downstairs. Tanara rushed out of Kairi's room to the top of the stairs. "Come in, Chicka!" she called. "Kairi and I just have to change out of our jammies and then we can do whatever you want!"

The door opened and Riku and Sora walked in at the same time that Amienn walked out of the bathroom.

"Stop stealing my word, Chicka," she said. She trotted down the stairs and plopped down on the floor.

Amienn is Naminé's twin, but from the pictures that Amienn brought with her over summer break, they're easy to tell apart:

Naminé's favorite color is white and she wears white all the time. Her room is just a basic pastel palette with a pastel blue ceiling and white chalk-drawn clouds.

Amienn, on the other hand, was into bright colors and dark shades. She loved music and played the keyboard. And while Naminé wore no make-up, Amienn's style was punk and bright with dark shades thrown in for good measure.

"Jammies," Sora giggled to himself.

"Oh, shut up," Tanara laughed, rolling her eyes. "Like you never called them that."

A few minutes later, Tanara and Kairi were changed and their beds were packed. They walked downstairs and sat down. Kairi plopped down on the floor next to Amienn while Tanara sat down next to Riku.

"This is unbelievable! We finally get to see where you, Kairi, and Amienn are from, Tanara," exclaimed Riku.

"You guys have really never been off these islands?" asked Amienn.

"Never. But I've always wanted to go explore. I'm not content here, knowing that there is something greater out there. Which makes Radiant Garden Boarding School the perfect solution. Meet new people, go to a new place; it's all so exciting!"

"I've always wanted to visit a new place, but I've never wanted to move away. I've lived here my whole life. I'd miss it too much."

Amienn smiled. "You guys will love it. I can't wait to see my sister and Ven again!"

"You know Ventus?" asked Sora.

"Well yeah. He and my sister like each other. It's totally obvious. I wonder if he finally got up the courage to make a move. Why do you ask, chicka*?"

"He's my cousin!"

"Whoa! Small world."

* * *

><p>The group walked around town, hung out at some of the local joints, reminisced, and ate. Then they walked out to the beach and talked in the rays of the setting sun.<p>

"I'm gonna miss this," commented Amienn, staring out into the sea.

"I know. Me too," agreed Kairi. "But we can always come back and visit. And Radiant Garden has a beach as well."

A foghorn sounded out in the distance.

"Ship's here," noted Tanara.

"Are we ready for this?" asked Kairi.

"Totally!" exclaimed Riku.

"Uh…Sure," muttered Sora.

"It'll be perfectly fine, Sora," said Riku, placing a hand on Sora's shoulder.

Kairi, Tanara, and Amienn giggled quietly and started running across the beach, leaving the boys by themselves.

"I'll be there. Kairi will be there. Tanara and Amienn will be there. And we can make new friends. You won't be alone. And if you miss it, we can back here whenever you want and chill."

Sora looked up at the older boy. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"Of course I'm sure. And nobody will ever replace you, Sora. Nobody _can_ ever replace you."

* * *

><p>Everybody got their ferry passes and room keys. They were going to sleep on the ship and they'd be in Radiant Garden in the morning.<p>

They found their rooms and dropped off their stuff, and then they wandered to the top deck and stared out at the ocean.

"I wonder who else is going to Radiant Garden for school," said Tanara as she turned around in a circle, scoping out the whole deck. Flaming red hair suddenly caught her eye as she was twirling around. She stopped suddenly and whipped back around, trying to find it again. "Oh my God!" she exclaimed when she caught sight of the red hair again. "Reno!"

The red head whirled around at the sound of his name. "T?" he asked, eyes wide. He walked over to them.

"T?" questioned Riku.

"It's a nickname. Guys, this is Reno. He's Lea's older brother. He used to baby sit Kairi, Lea, Isa, and me—And Ienzo on occasion."

"No way! It is you! What are you doing here?"

"Yeah, it's me! And I should be asking you the same thing. I thought you went off to college."

Reno blanched. "I'm not _that_ much older than you. Only three years."

"Lea sent me a letter saying you had gone off to Twilight Town. I thought that he was talking about college."

"Oh no, our parents broke up. Lea's living with Mom in Radiant Garden and I had been living with Dad in Twilight Town. But since the Radiant Garden Boarding School opened up they both thought it would be best if I went back to Radiant Garden. Which works out because my friends are transferring there as well."

"Oh no, that's horrible—The divorce, I mean. How's Lea taking it?"

"He's kinda broken up about it, but he has great friends in Radiant Garden. And he'll be psyched to know that you're coming back."

"He doesn't know we're coming back. I wanted it to be a surprise for him and Isa."

"Re-Re!" called a girl. She ran up to us. She had very clear, lightly tanned skin, black hair, and brown eyes. "Who are your friends Re-Re?"

Tanara quirked an eyebrow. "Re-Re?" She giggled. "Cute, but I have a better one. You should call him Turkey. He _really_ likes that."

The girl giggled. "Who are your friends, Turkey?" she asked and then snagged his shades and slipped them on.

"Thanks, T," said Reno, rolling his eyes.

"No problem, Turkey," Tanara replied with a large smile. She knew Reno hated that nickname, but it used to amuse her and Lea to no end.

"Guys, this is my girlfriend, Yuffie. Legs, this is Tanara and Kairi. They're friends of my little brother's. I used to babysit Tanara, Kairi, Lea, and Isa when the girls lived back in Radiant Garden."

"I'm Amienn," she said, introducing herself. "And this is Sora and Riku."

"It's nice to meet you guys," said Yuffie with a friendly smile. She turned to Reno. "And don't call me Legs."

"Lea will be so surprised to see you when you get off the ship," said Reno, seemingly ignoring Yuffie.

"He's gonna be waiting at the dock, isn't he? I wanted to surprise Lea and Isa at your house after the ship docked. But if they're gonna be waiting for you at the docks…" Tanara trailed off.

"I can text Isa. Tell him to stall Lea until after you're off the ship," offered Reno.

"No. That's no good. I wanted to surprise them both."

"Well I can text Naminé. I can ask her if she and Ven can stall Lea and Isa for you."

"Oh thank you, Amienn! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

Amienn took her phone out of her pocket and started tapping buttons.

"Can you ask Naminé if Lea has any idea Kairi and I will be coming with you?"

"Sure." Amienn tapped some more and then stuck her phone back in her pocket.

"Reno!" called a male voice.

Reno's face twisted into a look of horror. "Oh no. Please just walk away. Walk away." He glanced upward. "If there is a God, please be merciful and make him walk away," he muttered.

"Reno!" called the voice again.

"Damn," he muttered. He smiled and whirled around. "Sephiroth! I didn't know you were going to Radiant Garden too. What a surprise. How has your summer break been?" he asked, fake smile plastered on his face.

"Oh you know, same ol', same ol'. I got on the ferry in Midgar along with my cousins. They're enrolled at Radiant Garden as well.

"Oh, yay! Well that's nice. It's been nice chatting with you, Seph," said Reno with a wave and he turned around back to the group. When he was sure Sephiroth had gone away, the smile vanished and he cringed. "It's not bad enough that I have to deal with Sephiroth, but now I have to deal with his cousins too? I bet they're just like him. What did I do wrong to deserve this? Or does God just hate me?"

"If you want to right your karma, you can start by not calling me 'Legs' anymore, Reno."

Amienn pulled her phone out of her pocket. "Naminé replied. She said that she and Ven would stall Lea and Isa for as long as they can. And she said she asked Lea last week if he had any idea if you were coming up too."

"What did he say?"

"It's a two part text." Her phone made a noise. "She said that he had no idea if you were coming of not. He said he hoped you were but he honestly did not know."

Tanara started bouncing around. "Yay!"

Reno raised his eyebrows. "Do you have a crush on Lea?" he asked.

Tanara stopped jumping abruptly. "What? Are you crazy? We're just friends. No way."

"If you say so," said Reno. He totally didn't buy it, but he left it alone anyway.

* * *

><p>Demyx stepped out of his portal. He found himself on an island by a nice tree that grew at such an odd angle that it made a perfect bench. He climbed onto it and stared out at the sunset. "I love her and I have no idea what to tell her. She would just laugh it off and go tell Minaxné and Ikaxri and Menixna. I realize we don't have feelings, but I know this is love, even if it's just the memory of the feeling." He rubbed his face with his hands and massaged his temples for a minute. "Hell, this must be what those poor, cursed pirates feel like when they eat. Can't taste anything, never full, they only know memories of those feelings. Maybe I should talk to Xcat. He might be able to help me." Demyx sighed. He didn't know what to do. He was nervous and he was freaking out. "Wow, these are just <em>remnants<em> of feelings we all once used to know? Imagine how panicked I'd be if I were actually feeling these feelings full force." He chuckled sadly and strummed his sitar as he watched the sunset.

* * *

><p>XoXx0xXoX - XoXx0xXoX - XoXx0xXoX<p>

*Amienn addresses all her friends as "Chicka" even if they are boys.


End file.
